TV this week:
- Ghost Hunters: "Norwich State" - A mental asylum that people could not legally investigate for ghosts is finally opened up to TAPS. The tour guide is a former groundskeeper of the place, and the place is HUGE. They emphasize at the beginning of the episode that they got permission and that the place is incredibly dangerous because it's falling apart. I'm sure the physical dangers were a big reason no one was allowed in before. Add in how open those buildings are, and animals could be a hazard as well. Ghost hunting without safety measures and permission is just stupidity. I mean more stupid than just hunting for ghosts. Anyway, this was a funhouse for the ghost hunters, and that door moving was fairly impressive evidence, although it could easily be the building settling. This is the last episode before the mid-season break, so this is my last dose of ghosts for awhile.
- Battlestar Galactica: "Lay Down Your Burdens: Part 1" - Dean Stockwell rocks. Do I really need to say anything else about this episode?
- Battlestar Galactica: "Lay Down Your Burdens: Part 2" - Oh boy. That really changes everything. I mean really, completely. It changes everything. And it's apparently not a dream. Wow.
- Doctor Who: "Amy's Choice" - Not what I was expecting from this episode. But then, I'm not sure I knew what I was expecting anyway. Some very very good lines in this one which Doctor Who fans ought to be quoting for the next few years. And the villain was not who I thought it was.
This week's movie was Porco Rosso. An Italian WWI pilot cursed to be a pig fights pirates in the Adriatic. This was just beyond odd and into the way cool territory. I mean, it was strange enough of a plot, but everything that happens and the setting and everything... well. Depending on how you take the ending, this one certainly works out to be a sweet tale. Lots of Miyazaki's trademark flying, as you would expect in a movie about pilots.
This week's comic book related review is Amelia Rules! The Tweenage Guide to Not Being Unpopular by Jimmy Gownley. I've been following Amelia for a long time, and the move to trades was not a surprise. This is the first one, I think, that has entirely new material. I really enjoyed it. The longer format allowed for a slightly more complex story (not that the other stories weren't complex!) with a more complicated way of telling it. It takes quite awhile before we find out exactly what Amelia did to merit the mob chasing her up a tree. I liked this one a lot, particularly the coloring job on the kids during certain scenes. It was a powerful visual that helped to feel the emotions involved. Definitely a great book, well worth checking out.
My library book this week was Mennyms Under Siege by Sylvia Waugh. The Mennyms attract a bit of attention from neighbors, and have to hide away to protect themselves. This one had some unexpected events, enough to throw off what I thought was going to happen in this series. Looking forward to the next book. I'm not used to being shocked by events in a children's book, so this was nice.
Agatha Christie this week was Dead Man's Folly from 1956. Poirot is called into action by Agatha's MarySue character, and has a difficult time piecing together the mass of clues. I made several assumptions about this one based on the title alone, and so the twists were complete revelations to me and I was annoyed that I missed it so totally. Again, I look back and all the evidence is there, but I didn't come close to figuring it out while reading. On to the next!
3 comments:
Ooh! So who did you think the villain was in Amy's Choice? I was casting about for options, but I didn't come up with any.
Originally I thought it might be the Toymaker. Eric was predicting the Master of the Land of Fiction as one possibility.
I thought it was the Toymaker too! (Although the Valyard was a definite possibility...)
And I love Porco. It's interesting to know that it's Miyazaki's one film that a) he made with adults, not children in mind and b) he was convinced would not be successful (mainly because of a). But it's one of my favorites, second only to Laputa.
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